Portfolio Insights:“We are pleased to present this update on the performance of the UBC Endowment Fund for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013. The Endowment Fund earned a total net return of 10.9% for the year ended March 31, 2013, 30 basis points ahead of the benchmark portfolio return of 10.6% for the year. The market value of the Endowment Fund directly managed by UBC Investment Management Trust Inc. (IMANT) at March 31, 2013 was $1.045 billion. Including an additional $117 million historically held at related foundations, the total value of UBC’s Endowment now exceeds $1.16 billion.”(Source)

1) The University of British Columbia Fund provides a source of money that can be spent every year where the need is greatest: on items that the University might otherwise not be able to afford, or on projects that it might otherwise have to postpone implementing. These might be immediate needs or long-term projects. This initiative enables the Foundation, in a flexible manner, to make significant and immediate improvements to the University. The General Endowment Fund helps to build The University of British Columbia’s capital endowment for future financial security. Contributions to the University’s endowment are the most effective way of improving the University’s long-term financial security. (Source)

2) University of British Columbia endowment fund’s objective is to generate revenue that will fund future students, teachers and research. The Fund invests in Fixed Income, Private Equity, and Alternative investments. (Source)

3) Sustainability is part of the University of British Columbia’s brand so it’s not surprising its $1.1-billion endowment fund is a target of the international movement demanding public institutions “divest” from fossil fuel companies. Divestment, a tactic used to fight South Africa’s racist Apartheid policy, means taking money out of entities perceived to be creating a social ill, in this case climate change. UBC is estimated to have $100 million in companies whose products lead to greenhouse gas emissions. (Source)

4) Founding Google investor and University of British Columbia alumnus David Cheriton has donated $7.5 million to UBC’s department of computer science. In a statement, UBC says $7 million will go toward creating a new chair in computer science and $535,800 is earmarked for a new first-year course in computational thinking. Cheriton is a professor of computer science at Stanford University, a technology investor and business mentor. In 1998, he was a founding investor in the then start-up company, Google. “I have the deepest respect for David Cheriton, a scientist and philanthropist who supports the next generation of innovators,” said UBC President Arvind Gupta, in the statement on Friday. “His generosity will bolster computer science research and help UBC lead in an exciting and rapidly changing field.” (Source)

5) The University of British Columbia began planning for a complete sustainable community on campus during the 1990s. The plan was to create a vibrant university community that would promote live-work options for UBC faculty and staff, and that would raise money for the University’s endowment fund. The University Neighbourhoods Association was established in 2002 to support the growth of this vibrant and sustainable community and to provide municipal-like services for residents. (Source)

About Richard C. Wilson

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